Orihime's choice

In the kitchen of Orihime Inoue's home, the soup in the pot bubbled and steamed.

Orihime stood at the stove, carefully pouring several oddly colored ingredients into the pot. She had wanted to make a new dish today, and had already thought of a name.

It was called "Rainbow stew to lift your spirits."

Although the colors in the pot looked somewhat suspicious, Orihime herself was very confident in it.

"Just a little more of this..."

She picked up the seasoning bottle beside her and was about to pour a spoonful of white powder into the pot when a faint sound suddenly came from the living room.

Orihime stopped.

She turned around and cautiously walked out of the kitchen.

In the living room, a man dressed in white stood beside the window.

He had a pale face, cold eyes, and distinct Arrancar markings on his chest.

Ulquiorra turned his head and looked at her calmly.

Orihime's expression changed instantly.

"You... you're that Arrancar?"

She instinctively took a step back, clutching the apron behind her.

Ulquiorra did not draw his sword.

"I won't hurt you."

"Then why are you in my home?"

"Aizen needs you. He told me to bring you back."

Orihime swallowed, trying to calm herself.

Of course she knew who Aizen was, and she also knew that the person before her belonged to Hueco Mundo.

She knew even more clearly that he was certainly no ordinary person.

"I'm not going with you."

Orihime's voice still trembled a little, but she did not look away.

Ulquiorra watched her, his face expressionless.

"You have no right to refuse."

"Yes, I do!"

Orihime raised her voice, then startled herself with her own shout.

She clenched her fists, trying to hold on to her courage.

"This is my home. You can't just barge in, and you can't just take me away."

"If you don't come with me, we will keep attacking Karakura Town."

Ulquiorra raised a hand and pointed out the window.

"Look at Karakura Town now."

Orihime slowly turned around.

On the distant streets, crimson sword light and ice-blue Reiatsu erupted one after another. Tall buildings collapsed, flames surged into the night sky, and the intense Reiatsu reaching her from far away still made her chest feel tight.

Among that Reiatsu, there were presences she recognized.

Ichigo Kurosaki.

Yoriichi Tsugikuni.

And Chad, Rukia, and the Soul Reapers who had rushed over from Soul Society.

They were fighting.

Perhaps someone was already hurt.

Perhaps others would die.

Orihime's fingers began to tremble slightly. She closed her eyes, sensing the collisions of Reiatsu coming constantly from across the city.

"If I go with you..."

She asked quietly, "Will you stop attacking Karakura Town?"

"You are our only target."

Ulquiorra's answer was direct.

"Once we achieve our objective, we naturally won't continue the attack."

The living room fell silent.

Orihime lowered her head and looked at her hands.

She thought of Ichigo Kurosaki.

The boy who always frowned, yet fought with his life on the line to protect his friends.

Then she thought of Yoriichi Tsugikuni.

Yoriichi was always quiet, and never panicked no matter what happened. As long as he stood there, everyone felt certain that things could be resolved.

But this time, she did not want them to keep fighting for her.

Chad, Tatsuki, and everyone in their class should not be dragged into this either.

She had already lost her brother.

She did not want to see anyone else important to her get hurt because of her.

Orihime slowly raised her head, the fear in her eyes gradually settling.

"I can go with you."

Ulquiorra said nothing.

Orihime continued, "But before I leave, please let me leave a letter."

"Do as you like."

Ulquiorra glanced out the window.

Several powerful sources of Reiatsu were rapidly disappearing, and the distant battles were nearing their end.

"Time is limited. Be quick."

"All right."

Orihime ran to the table and picked up a pen and her diary.

She opened the diary and thought for a long time before slowly writing the first sentence.

Ichigo, Yoriichi, and everyone:

By the time you read this letter, I should already be gone.

Please don't worry about me.

And don't do anything dangerous to look for me.

I wasn't forced to go. I decided to leave with them myself.

Because as long as I stay here, everyone will keep fighting. Everyone will get hurt, and some of you might never come back.

I don't want to see that happen.

I'm truly happy I became friends with all of you. I used to think I was ordinary, that I couldn't do anything right and couldn't help anyone.

But after being with all of you, for the first time, I felt that I could be an important friend to someone too.

Ichigo, thank you for always protecting me.

Yoriichi, thank you for stepping forward whenever everyone was most afraid.

Chad, thank you for always quietly staying by everyone's side.

Tatsuki, thank you for always treating me as a true friend.

And everyone in our class, please keep living just as you always have.

Pay attention in class when it's time for class, and go home when it's time to go home. Don't change your lives because of me.

I'll take care of myself.

So please, all of you, make sure you take care of yourselves too.

Orihime stopped writing, her eyes already red.

She stared at the last line for a long time, then added another sentence beneath it.

If we can meet again someday, I'd like to have a meal with everyone.

Of course, this time I'll make something normal.

After she finished writing, Orihime gently closed the diary and placed it in the middle of the table.

She turned around and looked at the home she had lived in for so long.

The stove in the kitchen was still on, and the soup in the pot was still bubbling.

Orihime hurried over to turn off the stove, then took off her apron and set it aside.

Only after doing all that did she walk over to Ulquiorra.

"I'm ready to go."

Ulquiorra raised his hand.

Space slowly tore open behind them, revealing a pitch-black passage. A cold, deathly still presence drifted out from within.

Standing before the Garganta, Orihime looked back at her home.

There was reluctance in her eyes, and fear too.

But in the end, she still took a step forward.

"Please don't hurt them."

"As long as they don't follow us, nothing will happen to them."

Orihime bit her lip and followed Ulquiorra into the Garganta.

The darkness swallowed her figure.

Soon, only the open diary remained in the living room.

At Yoriichi Tsugikuni's home.

Tatsuki's voice came over the phone, so hurried that she barely paused.

"Yoriichi, do you know where Orihime went?"

Holding his phone, Yoriichi frowned.

"Shouldn't she be at home?"

"I called her house, but no one answered. I just went over to check and found a letter on the table."

The other end of the line fell silent for a moment.

"The letter was really strange. She told us not to fight for her, and said she left of her own accord."

"What else did she say?"

"Nothing else."

Beside him, Ichigo suddenly pushed himself up on the bed.

His injuries had not yet healed. He moved too quickly, immediately pulling at the wound on his chest.

"Cough..."

"Kurosaki-kun, you can't get up yet," Isane Kotetsu said hurriedly.

But Ichigo could not spare any attention for that. He stared at the phone in Yoriichi's hand.

"What happened to Orihime?"

Hearing his voice, Tatsuki hurriedly said, "Ichigo, Orihime's missing."

Ichigo's expression instantly darkened.

"She was probably abducted by Aizen."

Yoriichi lowered his phone and spoke calmly.

Ichigo whipped his head around.

"What did you say?"

"If Orihime was the target of this large-scale Arrancar invasion all along, then everything makes sense."

Yoriichi looked out the window.

"The other Arrancar were responsible for holding us off, while another Arrancar took the opportunity to enter the World of the Living and take her away."

Ichigo gritted his teeth.

"But why would they take Orihime?"

"They may be interested in her ability."

Retsu Unohana stood to one side, still wearing a gentle smile.

"Miss Inoue's ability is the rejection of all things. Even Aizen couldn't completely ignore a power like that."

Ichigo threw off the covers.

"I'm going to save her."

"I'll go with you."

Yoriichi spoke calmly.

Ichigo glanced at him, his voice thick with emotion.

"Then what about the World of the Living?"

"With so many captains here, there shouldn't be any problems for now."

Yoriichi replied, "Besides, I believe this Arrancar invasion is already over. They've achieved their objective, so they won't stay in Karakura Town."

Unohana nodded gently.

"It will be all right, Yoriichi."

She looked at Ichigo, her voice gentle, yet somehow reassuring.

"Leave this place to us."

Ichigo tightened his grip on Zangetsu, his gaze becoming resolute again.

"Then I'll leave it in your hands."

Yoriichi picked up Hekyō and left the room with Ichigo.

Without stopping, the two hurried toward the Urahara Shop.

To enter Hueco Mundo, they still needed Kisuke Urahara's Senkaimon.